-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Sitting in the first lady 's box listening to the President Barack Obama push for movement on immigration reform , Cristian Avila no longer had to keep his head down and live in fear of being deported .

While the President dedicated only a brief part of his State of the Union address to immigration , his message went beyond his speech , and the evidence was sitting among the guests invited to join the first lady in the viewing box .

`` I feel honored and excited to be here . If it was n't for receiving my DACA last summer I would n't have been able to attend the State of the Union , '' Avila told CNN .

The 23-year-old and his siblings are just one of the many thousands of recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals -LRB- DACA -RRB- . Avila was illegally brought into the United States with his younger brother and sister when he was 9 years old

DACA is a government program enacted in 2012 that stopped deporting some undocumented young people and instead granted them temporary work authorization and a two-year reprieve from deportation .

Obama hits the road to push State of the Union message

The recipients have become one of the most visible groups advocating for immigration reform .

Avila caught the attention of the Obama administration during his 22-day fast on the National Mall in support of immigration reform last November . And , for the last two years , Avila 's been working as a voter engagement coordinator for Mi Familia Vota , a non-profit Latino civic engagement program .

`` At the time , immigration reform seemed like it was dead . We won the hearts of the American people . We revived the conversation , '' Avila said .

Obama pleaded for cooperation and pointed out how getting immigration reform done this year was important for the country 's recovering economy .

`` If we are serious about economic growth , it is time to heed the call of business leaders , labor leaders , faith leaders , and law enforcement -- and fix our broken immigration system , '' Obama said .

Without attacking House Republicans , the President described how both parties in the Senate passed a comprehensive bill last summer and said both parties in the House want to do the same . He said immigration reform would not only help the economy but shrink the deficit by almost $ 1 trillion in the next two decades .

`` When people come here to fulfill their dreams -- to study , invent , contribute to our culture -- they make our country a more attractive place for businesses to locate and create jobs for everybody . So let 's get immigration reform done this year , '' he said .

Obama spoke of immigration reform in broad strokes but that might have something to do with the plans of House Republican leaders to outline their principles for immigration reform at a party meeting this week .

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`` We 're going to outline our standards , principles of immigration reform and have a conversation with members , '' House Speaker John Boehner said during a news conference after a party meeting .

Obama steered clear of specific immigration reform policies . There was no mention of stopping the deportations of undocumented immigrants without criminal records , despite countless pleas from activists all over the country .

Avila and his siblings no longer live in fear of being deported but his parents face that threat every time they leave their homes for work .

`` I grew up with the fear of being deported . My mom would always tell me to put my head down , '' Avila said .

`` I still have the constant fear of my parents being deported . They are fearful and targeted even though they earn their living in an honest way , '' said Avila , `` One of the reasons that I keep strong is for them . ''

Still , Avila remains optimistic that immigration reform will happen in 2014 .

`` We are closer than ever before . It should n't take any longer , '' Avila said .

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Sitting in the first lady 's box was DREAMer Cristian Avila

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`` If it was n't for receiving my DACA last summer I would n't be here , '' activist said

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Avila caught the attention of Obama administration during his 22-day immigration fast

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He 's optimistic about immigration reform despite fearing his parents being deported